With the way the fourth quarter had started, Northwestern was fortunate enough to get a potential game-tying three-pointer off in the final seconds. And a wide open one at that.

Pen Argyl led by 14 points on two separate occasions early in the fourth, but Northwestern was able to steadily chip away. That set up the possibility for overtime with the Tigers down by three points with 9.5 seconds to play.

Unfortunately, a three-pointer from Sam Seyfried in the corner was just short, and Pen Argyl (9-10 overall; 6-9 in Colonial League) capped its senior night with a 53-50 victory. The win officially eliminated the Tigers (7-12; 5-11) from postseason contention.

“We knew they were going to be taking Sam Yadush away, so we put him in a pick-and-roll to let him create because we trust him,” Hallman said. “If they get a little miscommunication on defense, he’s going to be open and we want the ball in his hands. We made the extra pass to Sam [Seyfried], and he was wide open. At that point you’ll take a wide open look from anyone on the court.”

And why wouldn’t the Green Knights be focused on Yadush, who finished with a team-high 19 points. He seemed to hit a big shot, including three from long range, every time the Tigers needed it.

Pen Argyl, however, was hitting its fair share from three-point land as well. The Green Knights hit 10 from beyond the arc, including three apiece from Adam Straose, Christian Scott and Mike Kukla.

“They made shots,” Hallman said. “They executed and they made the shots when they were open. For us in the first half, we didn’t take care of the ball. In the first quarter we had seven turnovers.

“They’ve been playing well the past couple of weeks. I think senior night gave them a little bit of energy.”

Holding its largest lead of the game at 49-35 after Scott hit his third and final three-pointer, Northwestern climbed back into it. Moments later, Robbie Seyfried (15 points) stole a Green Knight pass and took it the length of the court to make it a nine-point game. Yadush then hit two free throws, and Luke Hallman secured a rebound and putback to cut the deficit to just 51-46.

“[Rob Seyfried] makes us go,” Hallman said. “We have other guys that can hit shots. We just have to step up, hit them and move the basketball.”

Yadush earned a trip back to the line where he sank two more free throws, and Sam Seyfried found his brother Rob for his final two points of an 11-point frame to make it a one-possession game at 51-50. Pen Argyl, however, was fouled on the other end and made both of its free throws.

The finish may have been up to Hallman’s standards, but the opening quarter was not. Northwestern turned the ball over seven times and allowed the Green Knights to open up an 8-1 lead. That lead grew to as much as 13 in the second period, and Pen Argyl kept its distance at 39-27 heading into the final eight minutes.

“They were playing a 1-3-1, which we were expecting,” Hallman said. “It wasn’t anything that they threw at us that we didn’t know was coming. We just weren’t getting to the spots. We weren’t moving. We were turning the ball over.”

Northwestern will host Salisbury on Thursday at 7 p.m. and Catasauqua next Tuesday to close out the regular season.